【An Affair – Young Stepmother (2019)】

Huge telescopes dot mountainsides around the world.

From Hawaii to Chile,An Affair – Young Stepmother (2019) scientists seek out the perfect site with fair weather and dark, clear skies to peer deeply into space, clocking the movements of distant stars, planets, and other objects far beyond what we can see with the naked eye.

SEE ALSO: Construction Begins on One of the World's Largest Telescopes

A new observatory called the Giant Magellan Telescope, currently being built in Chile, should eventually be able to see far-off alien worlds and even take a look at their atmospheres.

But right now, the project is in a critical phase.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Scientists are in the process of casting the seven huge mirrors that will be used to allow the telescope to do its astronomical work.

The team is now casting the fifth mirror, a process that requires melting tons of glass in a furnace that spins five times per minute, according to the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization (GMTO).

After cooling, the mirror will be polished down into an exact shape that will hopefully help make the telescope take even sharper images than large space-based observatories like the Hubble Telescope.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Once these mirrors are ready and the observatory site is completed, scientists will open another eye on the universe.

But it hasn't always been smooth sailing for this new project. Crafting these mirrors isn't easy, though the reasons why are a bit technical.

"In making the first mirror we found that some basic old-world technical issues, such as hydroplaning, material creep and similar apparently simple issues that had been resolved for symmetric, on-axis, mirrors suddenly reared up as roadblocks to achieving the desired optical tolerances for the off-axis mirrors," Patrick McCarthy, GMTO Vice President, said via email.

"These have been resolved, but we realize that other unexpected challenges will arise in the future."

It took the GMTO a long time to get to this point, and it still has a ways to go before the telescope is operational. The observatory has been in the works for 14 years so far, and the telescope likely won't be fully operational until 2025 or 2026.

Scientists first started putting the project together in 2003, with a design review occurring during the span of three years. Construction began in 2015, and "first light" -- the moment when the telescope will start its preliminary test run -- is expected in 2023.

While it may seem somewhat slow, this timeframe is about average, or even quick, for most large science projects of this kind.

"Megaprojects in science, as in other areas of society, often take 20 years from inception to completion," McCarthy added.

"LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational Observatory) is a good example, as is the Large Hadron Collider at CERN. The Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope have been very long-term projects -- but they have all been, or promise to be, great successes," he said.

---

Featured Video For You

---

---

• Tech
• Deals
• Life
• Entertainment
• Science
• Games
• Social Good
• Shopping

• Take This Job and Love It?
• 5 features that will make you want to download iOS 15 now
• How to use Portrait Mode in FaceTime on iOS 15
• SXSW speaker scrambles to change sexist panel title following Twitter backlash
• Which Side Are They On?
• 'SNL' sets October premiere and guests, including Kim Kardashian and Rami Malek
• Timothée Chalamet showed us all how to be better people at the BAFTAs
• After Florida shooting, gun control becomes a global conversation
• The Lamentation of Doctor Faustus
• How to add Apple Music to your Memories in iOS 15

• Twitter users report slew of new bugs: Disappearing tweets, photo tags removed, link previews gone
• Crypto fugitive Do Kwon reportedly arrested in Montenegro
• Apple's iOS 16.4 has a cool feature that can make cellular calls better
• 'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for March 24
• Police in UK dye blue lagoon black to ward off pesky influencers who should be staying home
• Houston vs. Miami livestreams: How to watch the Sweet 16 matchup
• Remember FOMO? Yeah, neither do we.
• Help us, Star Wars coronavirus memes. You're our only hope.
• The best music to help you sleep
• Sleep paralysis demon memes are back since everyone's lonely while social distancing

• Psychic Healing at the End of History
• 5 features that will make you want to download iOS 15 now
• 'Dear White People' takes a final bow with uneven but bittersweet Season 4
• 'Dear White People' takes a final bow with uneven but bittersweet Season 4
• The Invention of a Master Terrorist
• Now you can fly a broomstick around Hogwarts in Oculus VR
• 4 things to know about mental health support in schools
• We regret to inform you that dogs named 'Bitcoin' exist
• International Man of Monocracy
• Now you can fly a broomstick around Hogwarts in Oculus VR

• Exit Through the Novelty Exhibition
• 'SNL' sets October premiere and guests, including Kim Kardashian and Rami Malek
• How to turn on Background Sounds with iOS 15
• The weirdest things Russian trolls did to swing the 2016 election
• When Gandhi Was Wrong
• Best and worst of 2021 Emmys
• Lupita Nyong'o is still making Michael B. Jordan do pushups, and it's still hilarious
• Now you can fly a broomstick around Hogwarts in Oculus VR
• The Power and the Noise
• How 'Shang